Electrical drop-cord fixture



K c E P H L ELECTRICAL DROP-CORD FIXTURE Fild Dec.

FIG-2 FIG-7 INVENTOR LEE H. PECK BY ATTORNEYS Patented Sept. 24, 1940ELECTRICAL DR-O-P- CORD FIXTURE Leel-l. Peck, Chagrin Falls, Ohio,assignor to Porcelain Products, Inc., Findlay, Ohio, a corporation oillelaware Application December 12, 1938, Serial No. 245,139

3 Claims.

trical drop-cord fixtures. as by the grommets 16. It will be understoodAn object of the present invention is to provide that certain of theknock-out portions may proan improved drop-cord fixture comprising avide openings through which electric wires are minimum number of partsarranged for easy passed and secured by the screws provided to 5manufacture and assembly and one which is very any of the conductors I5in the base member. simple to wire up in use. Openings ll through thebottom wall of the base Another object of the invention is to providemember are for attaching the same to a supporta drop-cord fixture formedalmost entirely of ing structure. dielectric material which is formed insuch a The cover member I8 is preferably a single 10 manner as torequire only two simple contact block of dielectric material such asporcelain genparts fitting into pockets in the dielectric to comerallyhollow in form having side walls [8a, end plete the device. walls H31)and a bottom wall I80. It will be noted Other objects of the inventioncomprise the that the side and end walls end in a common design andarrangement of the parts so as to plane and are adapted to engagesimilar walls 15" carry out the purposes of this invention and will onthe base member so that when the two are asbe more apparent from thespecification and. sembled as shown in Fig. 4 the parts inside aredrawing and the essential features thereof will completely enclosed indielectric material thus be summarized in the claims. giving a very safedevice. A raised portion i9 In the drawing, Fig. 1 is a top plan view ofthe on the base member engages in a notch 20 in 20. base member of thedevice; Fig. 2 is a bottom one of the side walls of the cover member soas plan view of the cover portion of the device; Fig. to insure theassembling of the parts in a pre- 3 is a top plan view of the covermember of Fig. determined relation. 2; Fig. i is a central longitudinalsection along Portions 2] of dielectric material are arranged lines 4- 1of Figs. 1 and 2 through the device to receive the contact members forconducting 25 with the cover and base members assembled; Fig.electricity to the drop-cord. Preferably as in the 5 is a portion of thebottom plan View of Fig. 2 form shown these are reinforc ng O partitionWith the electrical contact members removed; Walls extending between theside walls [811 of Fig. 6 is a sectional View taken along the line 6-43the cover member and integral therewith. It will of Fig. 5; while Figs.7 and 8 are two views of a e noted that t e is an Opening 22 p o id d 30contact member. centrally of the bottom wall I80 to permit the Many ofthe inventive features of my device entrance of a drop-cord inside thecover memmay be utilized in fixtures designed for different her. Thereinforcing walls 2| are spaced o applications and the presentembodiment shows n e t e de Of this central Op i g. As most one typewhich is useful for open wiring and to ear y S w in s- 5 a d 6 there isa pocket 35 this end the device has been made long and nar- 23 in eachof the walls 2| which is narrow and row and preferably not over 1%inches in width generally e flar in form so as to admit a, so as to fitover the edge of a 2 x 4 wood n strucmetal plate contact member with aslight amount tural member. of clearance. Two metal contact members areIn Figs. 1 and i I have shown a base member required and I have madethem exactly alike for 40 it of a type adapted to be used with aplurality ease in manufacture although it will be underof differentfixtures and it will be understood stood that they need not c ssarily bealike. As. that the present invention may use this base Shown in Figs- 7and 3 each C tact member 24: member or any othersuitable base member. Inhas a flat attaching portion 241% t which is the form shown in Figs. 1and 4 th b m threaded a screw 25 by which an electric wire 45 hercomprises a single block of dielectric material may be Secured thereto.Extending ay from such as porcelain. This block has acentral raised theattaching POTtiQn t an a g e thereto and portion i i and depressedportions I 2 at each end from one Side thereof is a Contact p n 45.thereof, there being the usual knock-out portions These Contact membersy e of res lient It in the end walls of the base member or cover 191 50member, or partly in both as here shown to per- In assembling the partsthe attaching p ti n mit the introduction of the Wires of an electric24a of each (intact m e is inserted in one circuit. The central portionH has a plurality of of the poc e s 3 a means is p ed for inparallelgrooves M running lengthwise of the suring the proper assembly of theparts. To this block in which are secured electrical conductors end aslot 26 on one side of the pocket 23 is made 55 This invention relatesto improvements in elecl5 which are permanently secured to the block toosmall to pass the head of the screw 25, while a slot 2! communicatingwith the pocket on the opposite side is sufiiciently wide to pass thehead of the screw. When the parts are assembled in the proper manner asshown in Fig. 2 one of the contact portions 241; will overlie thecentral conductor I5 in the base and the other contact portion willoverlie the right-hand conductor l5 as viewed in Fig. 1. It will beunderstood that the cover member of Fig. 2 is turned over on top of thebase member of Fig. 1 in the assembly operation. The assembled parts areshown in Fig. 4 and are held assembled by bolts 28 which pass throughsuitable openings in the cover member and enter threaded grommets in thebase member. When the parts are so assembled the base member andelectrical conductors thereof press against the resilient contactportions 241) pressing the contact members into the bottom of thepockets 23.

It will be seen that I have provided a device having a few number ofparts and simple to manufacture and that everything is so arranged thatit cannot possibly be assembled in the wrong manner.

What I claim is:

1. A drop-cord fixture comprising a block of dielectric material havinga central hollow portion, there being an opening through the lower faceof said block to admit an electrical conducting cord, there being twopockets in said block, one on each side of said hollow portion, saidpockets being narrow so as to admit a metal plate with slight clearance,metal plate contact members, one for each pocket, each member having aflat attaching portion adapted to fit in one of said pockets and anintegral contact portion outside of said pocket, a screw threaded intoeach attaching portion for securing an electrical conductor thereto,there being a slot adapted to pass the head of said screw communicatingwith each pocket on one side thereof only whereby each contact membermust be assembled in its pocket in a, predetermined manner, a basemember secured to said block, and electrical conductors on said basemember positioned to engage said contact portions when said base isattached to said block.

2. A drop-cord fixture as in claim 1, wherein said contact members areidentical, each having its contact portion extending at an angle fromits attaching portion, said contact members and pockets being arrangedto space said contact portions transversely of said block, and coactingmeans on said block and base member insuring assembly so that saidconductors engage said contact portions in a predetermined manner.

3. A drop-cord fixture as in claim 1, wherein said contact members areof resilient metal and identical, each having its contact portionextending at an angle from its attaching portion, said contact membersand pockets being arranged to space said contact portions transverselyof said block, coacting means on said block and base member insuringassembly so that said contact portions engage said conductors in apredetermined manner, and said base member pressing said contact membersinto the bottoms of said pockets.

LEE H. PECK.

